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>I get what you're saying but the other side of the coin is maybe the society at large is rejecting them. "Society at large" isn't doing any of this - a few billionaires in silicon valley are - that's the issue. Who is this, "them" you speak of? The false, binary left/right paradigm is a contrived illusion used to fool and manipulate simple people. What speech isn't okay? What's the standard used to silence people from the public square forever? There is none. Its an ever-evolving, subjective imposition of censorship. What "bad" speech results in your erasure? Many are suggesting its, "violent behavior". Others say, "incitement to violence". Many on capitol hill are saying, "aiding and abetting" those who would incite violence. Anyone who is informed and aware of what the phrase, "aiding and abetting" has been construed to mean since 9/11 knows just how amorphous that phrase is and how wide a net it can cast. If you defend the principle of unfettered free speech (as I do), can that be considered, "aiding and abetting" violence? Nobody has accused Parler of engaging in violence, but merely offering a platform for people to engage in free discussion is good enough to have them erased from the public square in a coordinated effort by tech oligarchs. This is exactly the concept of "prior-restraint" that our founders warned against. Silencing people because of what they might say. Watching sitting politicians openly calling for a, "domestic war on terror" should absolutely terrify anyone who has been paying attention to the results of our original, ongoing, "war on terror". Anyone who doesn't fully understand that any deviation from the official narrative on any issue will be silenced and considered, "domestic terrorism" has their head buried deep in the sand. How long until a comment like this is considered, "aiding and abetting domestic terrorism"? How long until Hacker News will be forced to ban me and censor comments like this in order to protect themselves from being silenced ala Parler? Even worse, how bad will the self-censorship be by people and platforms who are terrified of being erased, or put on a no-fly list, or have their bank accounts closed, or being subject to government sanctions and criminal charges, for saying the wrong thing? Hunter S. Thompson made a prophetic quote after the towers fell on 9/11 that is very poignant in light of what we are seeing today: The towers are gone now, reduced to bloody rubble, along with all hopes for Peace in Our Time, in the United States or any other country. Make no mistake about it: We are At War now — with somebody — and we will stay At War with that mysterious Enemy for the rest of our lives. |